Thursday 9 February 2017

Avatar to support In This Moment in the U.S. this spring



Sweden's finest AVATAR have announced new North American tour dates today in support of IN THIS MOMENT and MOTIONLESS IN WHITE on the 'Half God Half Devil' Tour. The tour begins Friday, April 7 at Milwaukee, Wisconsin's Eagles Ballroom and then continues through mid-May.

"We've got many friends in the United States nowadays and we feel like making some new ones," says frontman Johannes Eckerström. "We are grateful for this opportunity to hit the road. I believe this will not only be a chance to meet all our faithful Avatar Country-citizens once again, but I think there will be a busy day on our embassy following this."

"It's funny that the one I look forward to the most to perform in front of this time is YOU, who won't be reading this as you don't know who we are yet. Boy, oh boy are you in for a treat... It's on."

AVATAR will also make appearances at a number of highly coveted hard rock festivals, including Chicago's Chicago Open Air (Saturday, July 15), France's HELLFEST (Friday, June 16) and Belgium's Graspop (Saturday, June 17).

A special BLABBERMOUTH.NET presale will begin on Wednesday, February 8 at 10:00 a.m. EST and end on Thursday, February 9 at 10:00 p.m. EST. When prompted, type in the presale code "ITMBBM" to access tickets before the general public.

The general onsale is Friday, February 10 at 10 a.m. local time.

Apr. 07 - Milwaukee, WI - Eagles Ballroom Apr. 08 - Green Bay, WI - The Sandlot Apr. 09 - Maplewood, MN - Myth Live Apr. 11 - Omaha, NE - Sokol Auditorium/Underground Apr. 12 - Kansas City, MO - Arvest Bank Theater at The Midland Apr. 14 - Indianapolis, IN - Egyptian Room at Old National Centre Apr. 15 - Columbus, OH - Express Live Apr. 16 - Toronto, ON - The Danforth Music Hall Apr. 18 - Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory Apr. 19 - Albany, NY - Palace Theatre Apr. 21 - Baltimore, MD - Rams Head Live! Apr. 22 - Stroudsburg, PA - Sherman Theater Apr. 23 - Worcester, MA - The Palladium Apr. 25 - Pittsburgh, PA - Stage AE Apr. 26 - Detroit, MI - The Fillmore Detroit Apr. 28 - Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade - Heaven May 02 - Birmingham, AL - Iron City May 03 - Cincinnati, OH - Bogart's May 05 - Nashville, TN - War Memorial Auditorium

Swedish Electronic Artist KITE Announces Return to the U.S.



After their triumphant debut tour in the U.S. last Summer, Sweden's electronic duo KITE is returning Stateside for a longer and more extensive U.S. tour in support of their sixth EP, appropriately titled VI. Kicking off at NYC's Mercury Lounge on Tuesday, February 28th, KITE will be circling the States with their epic midnight dance music, including stops at DC's Spellbound, Detroit's Small's Bar, LA's Complex, and Seattle's Highline with two days in Austin for SxSW.

Called "Sweden's Depeche Mode" and "the best thing you can experience live", KITE have been cultivating their kinetic, epic and adventurous electronic wonderland of droning synths and throbbing beats, full of majestic melodies. Through the years, the band have often drawn comparisons to bands like Ultravox and Japan, even being called the "best pop music to come out of Sweden since The Knife."

KITE formed in 2008 when singer Nicklas Stenemo (who started his career in acclaimed indie groups such as Melody Club and The Mo) joined forces with keyboard player Christian Berg (who came from the even smaller town TranÃ¥s and from band Strip Music). Striking the music scene with their first single "Ways to Dance” from their self-titled debut EP, the track was an instant club hit that introduced the band to a massive Scandinavian audience that spread out to Western Europe and even the U.S. Throughout their six EPs, the band released dance hit after dance hit including "Jonny Boy", "I Just Wanna Feel", and "Cannonballs." Their latest EP VI saw the band expanding their sound and yielding atmospheric singles in "Up For Life" and "True Colours."

TOUR DATES: 2/28: Mercury Lounge (NYC) 3/1: QXT (Newark, NJ) 3/2: Pianos (NYC) 3/4: Spellbound (DC) 3/5: Fallout (Richmond, VA) 3/6: Howlers (Pittsburgh, PA) 3/8: Phantasy Nightclub (Cleveland, OH) 3/9: Small's Bar (Detroit, MI) 3/11: The Warehouse (La Crosse, WI) 3/12: Amsterdam (Minneapolis, MN) 3/17: SXSW 3/18: SXSW 3/19: Lizard Lounge (Dallas, TX) 3/22: Club Red (Phoenix, AZ) 3/24: Complex (Los Angeles, CA) 3/26: DNA (San Francisco, CA) 3/28: Lovecraft (Portland, OR) 3/29: Highline (Seattle, WA)

Wednesday 8 February 2017

Imelda May Announces Forthcoming Album "LIFE. LOVE. FLESH. BLOOD"



Imelda May Announces Forthcoming Album LIFE. LOVE. FLESH. BLOOD
Released on DECCA on 7th April

"She has poured her heart and soul into her new album" Evening Standard

“I love the girl she used to be but I think I love even more the woman she’s become. Still mischievous and playful, still a siren, but there’s an ache in her voice now that has me with a glass at my ear to the wall of her world where trouble has entered the room. There’s an erotic power here that’s not just feminine power. She makes truth telling an invitation to intimacy.” Bono

“I’ve never met anyone quite like Imelda May. She is full of life…I was inspired by her honesty and her generosity, and I continue to be intrigued.” T Bone Burnett

Imelda May today reveals her stunning new album cover as she officially announces her fifth studio record, entitled ‘Life. Love. Flesh. Blood’, to be released on Decca Records on 7th April.

It is clear that one of Ireland’s biggest exports has found a new groove, here presenting the most personal and intimately autobiographical album she has ever written. The album is produced by the legendary T Bone Burnett, who said of Imelda:

“When I first happened onto her music, she was a punky Irish Rockabilly singer with a great band. When I ran across her several years later, she had gone through a change of lives and was writing about it with a wild intensity and singing about it in the most open hearted way” – T Bone Burnett

Recorded over seven days in Los Angeles, the album features musical contributions from guitar hero Jeff Beck (on ‘Black Tears’), piano legend Jools Holland (on ‘When It’s My Time’) and an accomplished group of backing musicians including the core trio of guitarist Marc Ribot (Tom Waits, Elvis Costello), drummer Jay Bellerose (Elton John & Leon Russell, Ray Lamontagne) and bassist Zach Dawes (The Last Shadow Puppets, Mini Mansions), the same band that recorded Robert Plant and Alison Krauss’ Raising Sand.

The album marks a new direction for May who, in the time since her 2014 release Tribal, ended her marriage of eighteen years. Imelda May’s new sound sits firmly outside of any sharply defined genre box, widely spanning blues, rock, soul, gospel and jazz. 'Life, Love, Flesh, Blood' breathes new life into a classic sound, with Imelda’s powerhouse vocal as distinctive as ever, cementing her position as one of the strongest vocalists of her generation. The singer herself describes the record as her most "honest" yet. Imelda’s life changed considerably in the run up to recording, and this is documented in the only way she knew how. “It's therapy, like keeping a diary that a lot of people read. Some of my favorite songs don’t say much, but they reveal everything.” Imelda explains.

Single ‘Black Tears’, premiering today, is one such example. A personal and heart-wrenching ballad, it features a distinctive slide guitar part, coupled with a unique picking and guitar tone that could be the handiwork of only one man – the legendary Jeff Beck.

Jeff Beck says of Imelda, “I knew it from the start ...you cannot ignore talent this unique” – Jeff Beck

Imelda showcases her raw yet restrained breathtaking lead vocal, complimented by rich backing vocals and a super tight rhythm section. Written with Angelo Petragalia (Kings of Leon), the inspiration for the song’s visual and poignant lyrics were inspired by a very personal moment for Imelda:

“I wrote Black Tears with Angelo Petraglia after a heart wrenchingly difficult goodbye. I closed my door and caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror with black tears rolling down my face. It's a sight and situation most women have unfortunately seen ourselves in at some point in life. Angelo had a beautiful guitar piece that fit the mood perfectly.”

Imelda saw 2017 in with this very track, as she impressed viewers of Jools Holland’s esteemed annual Hootenanny on New Year’s Eve with a captivating live performance, which landed hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube in just days of its upload and was the most popular hootenanny video this year on BBC Music’s YouTube channel.

Imelda May, born and raised in The Liberties area of Dublin, has become one of Ireland’s most celebrated female artists in history. Discovered by Jools Holland, who asked Imelda to support him on tour, Imelda has gone on to perform alongside legendary artists including Lou Reed, Bono and Smokey Robinson. Her previous album ‘Tribal’ debuted at #1 in Ireland and #3 in the UK.

Imelda has also just announced her extensive 2017 UK Headline Tour in May, including a night at The London Palladium.

MAY 2017 UK & IRELAND TOUR DATES: THU 04 IPSWICH REGENT THEATRE FRI 05 CARDIFF ST DAVID’S HALL SAT 06 CAMBRIDGE CORN EXCHANGE MON 08 SOUTHEND CLIFFS PAVILION TUE 09 GUILDFORD G LIVE THU 11 READING HEXAGON FRI 12 BOURNEMOUTH PAVILION THEATRE SAT 1 NOTTINGHAM ROYAL CONCERT HALL MON 15 LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC TUE 16 YORK BARBICAN THU 18 LONDON PALLADIUM FRI 19 BRISTOL COLSTON HALL SAT 20 MANCHESTER BRIDGEWATER HALL MON 22 BIRMINGHAM SYMPHONY HALL TUE 23 EDINBURGH USHER HALL WED 24 GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL FRI 26 GATESHEAD THE SAGE SAT 27 BELFAST WATERFRONT HALL MON 29 DUBLIN, BORD GAIS ENERGY THEATRE TUE 30 DUBLIN, BORD GAIS ENERGY THEATRE WED 31 DUBLIN, BORD GAIS ENERGY THEATRE

Tuesday 7 February 2017

TAKING BACK SUNDAY Debuts "Call Come Running"



Photo Credit: Ryan Russell

TAKING BACK SUNDAY have debuted their music video for “Call Come Running” via PAPER MAGAZINE. Featured on the band’s seventh studio album TIDAL WAVE which debuted at #8 on the iTunes chart, the video, directed by Djay Brawner, is a loose sequel to the previous video for “You Can’t Look Back” which found vocalist Adam Lazzara suffering from an unidentified bloody affliction. Fans will be excited to see several special cameos in the new video, including Lazzara’s father.

Proving to be "the most personal video yet for frontman Adam Lazzara," Paper Magazine reports, "A story of renewal and rebirth, that ends with a shot of Lazzara reemerging from a body of water to meet his (again, actual) family, it mirrors the album's foray into themes of growing, adulthood and building families -- a far cry from much of the rest of the band's 18 years-worth of material."

The band is gearing up for a UK and European tour with Frank lero and the Patience kicking off February 11 in Belfast. Shortly after, the band will be making their way down under to Australia and New Zealand, with Acceptance opening during the Australia dates [March 15 - 23]. On March 26, the band will be making a stop in Hawaii at The Republik. In May, Taking Back Sunday will be tackling the U.S. festival circuit at Rocklahoma, Rock On the Range, Carolina Rebellion, and the Bud Light River City Rockfest in San Antonio, TX.

Taking Back Sunday is Adam Lazzara (vocals), John Nolan (guitars, vocals), Eddie Reyes (guitars), Shaun Cooper (bass), and Mark O’Connell (drums). TIDAL WAVE was released via Hopeless Records in 2016 and was produced by Mike Sapone (O'Brother, Mansions) in Charlotte, NC and mixed by Claudius Mittendorpher (Weezer, Drowners, Ra Ra Riot).

TOUR DATES: Feb 11 Limelight Belfast, UK* Feb 12 Vicar Street Dublin, Ireland* Feb 14 O2 ABC Glasgow, UK* Feb 15 O2 Ritz Manchester, UK* Feb 16 O2 Forum Kentish Town London, UK* Feb 17 Rock City Nottingham, UK* Feb 18 UEA Norwich, UK* Feb 20 Gloria Cologne, Germany* Feb 21 Lido Berlin, Germany* Feb 23 Ampere Munich, Germany* Feb 24 Club CANN Stuttgart, Germany* Feb 25 TivoliVredenburg Utrecht, Netherlands* Mar 15 Powerstation Auckland, New Zealand Mar 17 The Enmore Theatre Newtown, Australia # Mar 18 The Triffid Brisbane, Australia # Mar 19 170 Russell Melbourne, Australia # Mar 21 170 Russell Melbourne, Australia # Mar 22 The Gov Adelaide, Australia # Mar 23 Metro City Northbridge, Australia # Mar 26 The Republik Honolulu, HI May 07 Carolina Rebellion Charlotte, NC May 20 Rock On The Range Columbus, OH May 26 - 28 Rocklahoma Pryor, OK May 27 River City Rockfest San Antonio, TX Apr 08 - 09 When We Were Young Festival Santa Ana, CA

*Frank lero at the Patience # Acceptance

KILLCODE release Kickin' and Screamin' music video teaser





Directed by David Swajeski and Produced by Maryanne Grisz

"Kickin' and Screamin' " is also now available for download purchase at KILLCODE's website.

Monday 6 February 2017

Lauren Hoffman & the Secret Storm - "Family Ghost", Released January 27th, 2017 - ALBUM REVIEW



Lauren Hoffman & the Secret Storm - "Family Ghost"
Released January 27th, 2017

Family Ghost is the debut album from Lauren Hoffman & the Secret Storm. The American singer delivers a beautiful collection of musical vignettes about love, relationships thru broken ballads or indie rock like songs. It is probably what some people may call alternative folk.

It is not a debut album as such as Lauren has recorded 4 previous albums. Some even with prestigious labels over the last 20 years but success has not been meeting her past a strong circle of aficionados and knowledgeable critics. This may change in 2017 with this LP, containing 11 songs of pure emotion and urban melancholy.

I like the guitar and piano playing together on Feel It All - a very accessible track. Family Ghost is a wicked title with some Sonic Youth rock vibes. Broken is soft and suave. The Dragon with its atmospheric ambience and violin is one the best track intro I have heard in a while and the entire song is captivating and suspended to Lauren’s voice when the song gains more momentum.

The entire album has touches of burlesque and cabaret but it is a unique style except for only title the easy and average I Broke Up with A Guy Who Kind Looks Like You but may do well on Alternative radios.

It’s a beautiful album but you got to build a relationship with it to fully appreciate songs like Til it Lasts or Let the Waves Crash on Me. It’s pleasant but it is not easy listening. You got to work to fully grasp all the musical gems in Family Ghost, an album that will stay with you no matter what you do. It will hunt you with delicacy and persistence, asking your senses to surrender to a sombre introspective and other aerial narratives.

It’s dreamy, it’s dark. Talented and beautifully delivered with just that raw pinch of authenticity and musicality which is such a scarce commodity.

Overall: Intriguing and beautiful.
If I was to pick three only: Family Ghost, The Dragon and Let the Waves Crash on Me
Live test: Would be curious to see her on stage.

Album review by Pascal Derrien